A/V: Hey peeps! Sup'! Here's chapter 6 hope ya'll like it! Sorry it took so I've been really sick lately cough cough sniff sniff so bare with the old gal okay!

Disclaimer: As sad as it may be I don't own Avatar, cause if I did Zuko and Katara would be hooked up, Yue wouldn't be dead, Aang and Toph would be together, and Azula would be dead (sorry Azula but you suck!)

Chapter 6

Katara sat with her back against a large red rock, her arms folded across her chest. She winced ever so slightly at the sound of Zuko wrenching behind her. Katara bit her lip in disgust, that didn't even sound right! She didn't know her cooking was THAT bad!

"You okay back there" she called over her shoulder. As much as she hated to admit it, she was kind of concerned about the sick firebender behind her. He saved her life and she repays him by making the poor guy throw up his guts!

For a moment there was no reply. Then a very uneven, shaky voice, that sounded like it would just collapse from breathing, answered her. "Does it sound like I'm okay?" It whispered in an angry sort of hiss.

Katara gritted her teeth as she licked the back of her clenched jaw, "Well, in my personal opinion it sounds like your trying to barf up whatever you have left in your body." She scoffed.

Katara had to stifle a giggle as Zuko gave sudden groan at her words.

He'll be fine! The waterbender thought as she pushed herself off the large rock she was leaning on and walked over to untie their ostrich-horse from the tree Zuko had hitched him to the night before.

But as Katara worked on the horses knots, something on the horizon caught her attention. Her eyes narrowed as she tried to make out the object. If she didn't know better she'd say it looked like some type of tank. But it was far too big and too long to be a tank. Just then a small puff of smoke issued from the object. Katara felt chills roll down her spine, her blood turned cold. Fire Nation. It was one of the Fire Nation's Train-Tanks! And it was heading right for them!

"Uh, Zuko! How good are feeling right now?" Katara called over her shoulder as her body began to shake. Her voice was cracked and rather squeaky, if Zuko noticed this, he sure didn't show it.

"Oh, well?" the firebender's voice scoffed from behind the large boulder, "considering I just hacked up half my own body weight, I'm doing just perfect!" His voice dripped in sarcasm, but Katara was too frightened to snap a reply back.

"Do you feel good enough to ride…? VERY FAST!" Katara was just able to mumble through gritted teeth.

From behind the large boulder that separated them Zuko went in a fit of coughs, "Why do you ask?" he managed choked out.

"Hmmm…" Katara muttered sarcastically, turning to face the boulder the prince was behind, "well, there's the very slim possibility that I could be concerned for you, which is unlikely or it could be that there's a giant Fire Nation Train-Tank heading for us!" Her words smothered in sarcasm and anger, which (unknown to Katara) sounded creepily similar to the way Zuko had sounded moments ago.

The firebender suddenly appeared around the boulder, confusion and fear wrapped around his amber eyes, "What are you talking about…" his voice faded as he too noticed the Train-Tank on the horizon, which by now had gained a very noticeable amount of space between them. All the color (which was green at the moment) left the young prince's face.

Without thinking Zuko grabbed Katara's wrist and climbed on to their ostrich-horse. The waterbender wrapped her arms tightly around his waist, which she immediately corrected, remembering Zuko was sick, but he didn't seem to mind at the moment.

The firebender cracked the reins and off they went… neither knew who might be on the tank, but they definitely didn't want to risk their lives to find out.

Katara tried her best to stay in the saddle as the creature galloped across the blistering desert ground, but it was impossible. More than once she nearly fell off, but to her surprise Zuko always reached back in time to catch her and push her back on. This action made Katara blush slightly (though she didn't have any clue why).

"How far are they behind us?" Zuko asked over his shoulder. Katara loosened her grip on the prince's waist as she turned in the saddle, and to her horror saw that the tank was now only one hundred meters behind and closing in fast.

"Uh…their pretty close." She was just able to squeak. She turned back in her saddle and tightened her grip around Zuko's waist as the horse pace quickened at its own accord.

Katara felt the blood drain from her face as the sound of a grumbling engine grew louder and louder behind them, both she and Zuko knew that the space between them and the tank was getting smaller with every passing minute. They had to do something fast. As they came to the edge of a rocky ravine, Katara was sparked with an idea.

"Zuko!" Katara had to shout over the engines roar now, "Head for the ravine! We can loose them in there!"

"Are you sure?" the prince called back, his knuckles burning white as he squeezed the horse's reins.

"No! But if you have any better ideas please feel free to share them!"

Zuko didn't reply.

Katara smirked, "That's what I thought! Now get us down there! Maybe there are some caves we can hide in until this thing passes."

Once again Zuko didn't say anything; he merely nodded and, very carefully, led their horse down the ravines steep sides. (A/N: This ravine is very similar to the canyon in the episode The Great Divide. Except on this ravine it has no path to walk down its sides.) Its walls and ledges were jagged and definitely not safe walk on, let alone ride down them on a horse!

Katara squeezed her eyes shut as their steed slowly began to descend down the rocky ledges, her arms wrapped tightly around Zuko waist. She had never been more scared and tense in her life. Sure she had been high places before, but that was in the air and on Appa, a reliable sky-bison! It was a totally different sensation when you're on a dangerously steep ravine, riding double, on an unstable hybrid!

Katara felt her stomach turn as she glanced over the ledge they were walking on; they were so high up that even one small trip could mean certain death.

Good God, please let us get of this ravine soon, the waterbender begged as she shut her eyes again, her body so tense it felt like a rock.

After what felt like hour of descending, tripping, and near fall experiences, the two benders finally made to the bottom of they ravine, and just as Katara suspected the Train-Tank was not able to follow them down its steep sides, and they found a cave just big enough to sleep in. Unfortunately luck isn't always on their side, for right as they reached the bottom of the ravine it started to rain; well actually it was more of a flash flood.

"Well, this was a great idea!" Zuko grumbled sarcastically, salty rain poured down onto his head as the two walked into the cave they had just found, "Oh, lets go down into the ravine where it's safe." He imitated in a high voice, mocking Katara's words.

Katara bared her gritted her teeth, as she bent the rain water out of her soaked clothes, "Well, if I do so remember you didn't have anything better in that screwed up head of yours!" this boy was really getting on her last nerve.

Zuko eyes narrowed, he too bared his teeth, "You're calling me screwed up!" he snarled, his fists ignited threateningly.

"Yes! You're a screwed up, spoiled, self-centered brat who cares about no one but himself!"

"You know nothing about me." Zuko growled, fire spitting from his mouth. His eye flared dangerously.

Katara could tell that he was getting really angry now, but she didn't care! He had pulled at her last nerve for too long. She would say anything what she wanted to say! Little did she know this was the biggest mistake you could ever make around Prince Zuko.

"Oh, I think I know enough to see that you're fool! You have no purpose! All you've ever done is chase the Avatar around the world and make the world hate more than it already does! Oh, and be a complete jackass to everyone around you!" Ow! That's gotta hurt.

For a moment there was complete silence, even the rain seem to cease its sound.

"How would you feel?" Zuko suddenly whispered calmly.

"What?" Katara snarled back.

What the heck is he talking about?

"How would you feel?" Zuko repeated slowly, hatred and anger a now gripped his topaz eyes, but not his voice. "If everywhere you went people turned their backs on you. Like you were some kind of hideous monster or pest that they just couldn't get rid of. How would you feel? If your own father banished and burned you because you stood up for something you thought was right. To have your own mother taken from you just so you could live. How would you feel?" his eyes narrowed.

Katara blinked at the prince, uncertain of what to say, so she remained in shocked silence.

Zuko sighed at Katara's muteness, "You don't know? Do you know why that is?" his voice was still calm, but the frightened waterbender could see the anger, hatred, and…sadness that filled his eyes.

Katara tentatively shook her head, not wanting to anger Zuko more than she already had. She would have preferred him yelling and screaming at her, it would feel much better than this calm voice that was making her feel like crap for what she had just said.

"You don't know how you feel, because you haven't been through the things I've been through. So if I were you peasant I wouldn't judge people you don't know anything about. Because just might have said something you'll very much regret." With that the angered firebender turned on his heel and walked deeper into the cave, leaving a very guilty waterbender behind.

But as Zuko left, Katara saw something she'd never forget… tears were in the princes as he turned away from her. Which only made Katara feel even guiltier than she already was, tears formed in her own eyes as a new emotions started filling her heart: compassion, sadness, and… anger.

Me: Hey! Well, there's chapter 6! Hope you guys liked it! I know it was kinda rushed but, I really want to get to the good parts! And I know Zuo and Katara were both kinda OOC there for a second. Sorry!

Now for those of you who are waiting for the fluff scenes, there in the next chapter! Yoo! Whoo! If anything is confusing you please feel free to tell me-

Zuko: Whoa! Wait a minute! What do you mean fluff scenes?

Katara: That better not mean what I think it means!

Me: WTF! How the heck did you two get here?

Zuko: That doesn't matter right now! What's this fluff scene we keep reading about?

Katara: Yeah! If it involves us, then we have a right to know what it is!

Me: (sigh) Ok, come here (Pulls Zuko and Katara over and whispers the fluff scenes in their ears)

(Zuko dies from embarrassment, while Katara pukes up in the corner)